Parking For The New Hospital A Priority Over People

After calculating an estimated 2,650 on-site parking spots at the current two campuses of Windsor Regional Hospital, new information seems to explain the hospital’s motive for secrecy about the number of parking spaces.

A concerned citizen estimated there are 1,000 on-street parking spaces within a 10 minute walk around Met Campus. Likewise, the Ouellette Campus is comparable. A conservative estimate suggests there are an extra 250 street parking spaces available for use by each campus, upping the total to 3,150 spaces; slightly more than the 3,096 planned for the new hospital.

It is unlikely that the new facility would include any additional on-street parking. Parking shortages will also intensify with fewer people walking, riding a bike, or taking public transit.

The two acute care campuses are built on a combined 24 acres, but have an estimated 2,650 on-site parking spots servicing 2/3 of the floor space planned for the new hospital. Assuming the extra floor space will be used, we can assume there will be extra traffic to the facility.

Less parking despite initial survey responses which justified parking as a priority.

This is not just about potential parking shortages at the new hospital. The comical parking space secrecy conspiracy becomes a serious issue due to the site selection of 60 acres contrary to the provincial directive of 40 to 50 acres, or less; just to install surface parking.

The scale diagram shows that the proposed hospital uses a smaller footprint when compared to the predominance of surface parking lots.

Most hospitals are located in densely populated areas to be near the people they serve, but 60-acres lot in the city weren’t readily offered for sale. Hence we are now testing a single, remote location for the sake of parking.